A blog of political positions and thoughts, from a liberal who evolved into a moderate, and who keeps on evolving. Open-minded analysis. Plain writing. Occasional profanity.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Short: Open Letter to Conservatives

First, two disclaimers:

The open letter is NOT short. It's long, but pithy and readable.

It was written by Russell King, whoever that is, and published by Talking Points Memo. However, all links to their version are broken, but here's a complete version that still works as of May 2013. The pictures were added, and are somewhat nasty.

Here are some teasers:

You can't vote and scream against the stimulus package and then take credit for the good it's done in your own district (happily handing out enormous checks representing money that you voted against...

You have to condemn those among you who ... celebrate violence, joke about violence prepare for violence or use violent imagery, "fun" political violence, hints of violence...

I found this open letter as I searched for a blog from a former conservative in hopes that it would enlighten me. (Side note - I can't even remember the particular issue that prompted my search, and it happened just this morning. Thoughts have no time to get moldy in my brain--they turn to dust almost immediately. I'm not looking forward to dealing with my brain as it reaches 70 years old.)

Here is a refutation of the complaints in the open letter, except when it's confirmation of them. An excerpt:

Conservatives stand on principles: limited government, personal liberties, freedom of expression, and so on. We believe in the principles that the Founding Fathers espoused, and not the whims of your modern-day liberal intellectual.

With all this material, there are probably some solid complaints and enough straw men for one hell of a bonfire. Enjoy, and bring the wieners.